First day of Phase 1 and new
 

I am just popping in to say Hi. I have never tried to South Beach Diet. I went from weighing about 175 to 118 about three years ago, running and weight watchers. I have gained almost all the weight back. I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and I stopped doing WW. I have lost ten pounds through walking five miles a day. About a month ago I weight 168. I weigh 158 as of today. My mini goal is to reach 150. I am aiming for the 140.

Welcome! Check out the Phase number one support thread.

Welcome! Nice to meet you:)

Welcome to the beach. :)

I'm new, too. I bought the book, bought the groceries, and plan to start cooking phase 1 dishes the night before I eat (having a day job makes day food prep challenging).
I'm wondering - do I HAVE to eat EVERYTHING listed in a day's meal plan, based on the breakdown of the food in the intestines, or can I skip foods/ingredients I don't necessarily like (like the ricotta desserts, or radishes in the salads)? And, by the way, where DO you find Ginger Sauce in the grocery store??? Is Ginger paste an OK substitute?

Congratulations!!!

I have rarely used a recipe/meal plan from the book. I just plan my meals by the principles (nicely summarized here). You don't ever have to eat something you don't want to - I mean, you should be eating ~ 4.5 cups of veggies/day and you should try to maximize nutrient-rich ones, but there is no vegetable you have to eat if you don't like it... same with proteins and fats ...

I ate a ricotta "creme" once and only once - hated it. I often have nonfat Greek yogurt made the same way and I love that. For sure you don't have to eat radishes if you don't like them. I don't know what the ginger sauce is, sorry...

You don't have to eat everything - I often don't, as I am not going to shove food in if I am not hungry. But if you end up routinely under-eating, or not hungry for what you have planned, that might warrant some tweaking of the diet. But the beginning is all about figuring out what works for you.

:goodluck:

I've never used a meal plan or recipe from the book. I do find recipes on southbeachrecipes.com. They have them seperated by Phase 1 and Phase 2. I've found some pretty awesome recipes there! If the recipe contains something that I don't care for, I either leave it out or substitute something else that I do like and that is SB friendy. As long as you follow the main principals, SB can pretty much be tailored to the individual.

Welcome!

Best wishes!

I have never followed menu plans or recipes in the books. I make my menus based on what my family likes and approved ingredients.

Thank you!!! :) And welcome to the beach!!! :)